Information processing apparatus, information processing method, and non-transitory recording medium

ABSTRACT

An information processing apparatus includes: circuitry that detects information relating to a user of the information processing apparatus, determines whether the user is a visually impaired person based on the information relating to the user, and based on a determination indicating that the user is the visually impaired person, enable a voice reading operation function for the visually impaired person.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This patent application is based on and claims priority pursuant to 35U.S.C. § 119(a) to Japanese Patent Application No. 2021-170952, filed onOct. 19, 2021, in the Japan Patent Office, the entire disclosure ofwhich is hereby incorporated by reference herein.

BACKGROUND Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to an information processing apparatus,an information processing method, and a non-transitory recording medium.

Related Art

There is known a function of reading aloud operation information on anelectronic apparatus such as an image forming apparatus or a terminalapparatus by voice for a visually impaired person such as a weak-sightedperson or a totally blind person. For example, there is a technique ofoutputting a voice of an operation state using an operation key everytime when an operation function changes.

However, with the technique of related art, the voice reading operationfunction for a visually impaired person could not be enabled.

SUMMARY

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, an informationprocessing apparatus includes circuitry that detects informationrelating to a user of the information processing apparatus, determineswhether the user is a visually impaired person based on the informationrelating to the user, and based on a determination that the user is thevisually impaired person, enables a voice reading operation function forthe visually impaired person.

According to another embodiment of the present disclosure, aninformation processing method includes detecting information relating toa user of an information processing apparatus; determining whether theuser is a visually impaired person based on the information relating tothe user; and based on a determination that the user is the visuallyimpaired person, enabling a voice reading operation function for thevisually impaired person.

According to still another embodiment of the present disclosure, anon-transitory recording medium, when executed by one or moreprocessors, causes the processors to perform an information processingmethod. The information processing method includes detecting informationrelating to a user of an information processing apparatus; determiningwhether the user is a visually impaired person based on the informationrelating to the user; and based on a determination that the user is thevisually impaired person, enabling a voice reading operation functionfor the visually impaired person.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more complete appreciation of the disclosure and many of the attendantadvantages and features thereof can be readily obtained and understoodfrom the following detailed description with reference to theaccompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a view illustrating an example of a voice reading operationfunction according to one or more embodiments of the disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configurationof an information processing apparatus and an image forming apparatusaccording to one or more embodiments of the disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram illustrating an example of functionalblocks in the information processing apparatus according to one or moreembodiments of the disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart presenting an example of processing in theinformation processing apparatus according to one or more embodiments ofthe disclosure;

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating processing in an information processingapparatus according to a first embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating processing in an information processingapparatus according to a second embodiment of the disclosure; and

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating processing in an information processingapparatus according to a third embodiment of the disclosure.

The accompanying drawings are intended to depict embodiments of thepresent invention and should not be interpreted to limit the scopethereof. The accompanying drawings are not to be considered as drawn toscale unless explicitly noted. Also, identical or similar referencenumerals designate identical or similar components throughout theseveral views.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In describing embodiments illustrated in the drawings, specificterminology is employed for the sake of clarity. However, the disclosureof this specification is not intended to be limited to the specificterminology so selected and it is to be understood that each specificelement includes all technical equivalents that have a similar function,operate in a similar manner, and achieve a similar result.

Referring now to the drawings, embodiments of the present disclosure aredescribed below. As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the”are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the contextclearly indicates otherwise.

Hereinafter, an information processing apparatus, an informationprocessing method, and a program according to embodiments of the presentdisclosure will be described in detail with reference to theaccompanying drawings.

First Embodiment System Overview

FIG. 1 is a schematic view illustrating an example of a voice readingoperation function according to an embodiment of the disclosure. FIG. 1illustrates a setting screen of a scanner in which a voice readingoperation function for a visually impaired person is enabled in a touchpanel with which an operation of an image forming apparatus 9 isperformed. When a user performs an operation of swiping on the touchpanel (moving a finger on the screen while keeping the finger in contactwith the screen), the type of setting for the button touched by thefinger and the current setting value are read aloud. For example, whenthe user touches a color setting button, the type of setting and thecurrent setting value are read aloud as “color setting, automatic”; whenthe user touches a file type setting button, the type of setting and thecurrent setting value are read aloud as “file type, PDF”; and when theuser touches a resolution setting button, the type of setting and thecurrent setting value are read aloud as “resolution, 200 dpi”.

In the embodiment of the disclosure, first, the image forming apparatus9 detects information relating to a visually impaired person as a user,and then determines whether the user is a visually impaired person basedon the detected information. Finally, when determining that the user isthe visually impaired person, the image forming apparatus 9 enables avoice reading operation function of the apparatus operated by the user.In this case, the apparatus operated by the user is not limited to theimage forming apparatus 9, and may be any information processingapparatus 1 having a voice reading operation function. For example, theapparatus operated by the user may be a ticket vending machine for aticket or the like installed in a station or the like.

Hardware Configuration Example

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configurationof the information processing apparatus 1 and the image formingapparatus 9 according to an embodiment of the disclosure. As illustratedin FIG. 2 , the information processing apparatus 1 and the image formingapparatus 9 (or referred to as MFP which stands for a multifunctionperipheral, a multifunction product, or a multifunction printer) includea controller 910, a short-range communication circuit 920, an enginecontroller 930, an operation panel 940, and a network interface (I/F)950.

Among these components, the controller 910 includes a central processingunit (CPU) 901 that is a main part of a computer, a system memory(MEM-P) 902, a north bridge (NB) 903, a south bridge (SB) 904, anapplication specific integrated circuit (ASIC) 906, a local memory(MEM-C) 907, a hard disk drive (HDD) controller 908, and a hard disk(HD) 909. The NB 903 and the ASIC 906 are coupled to each other via anaccelerated graphics port (AGP) bus 921.

The CPU 901 among these components is a control unit that performsoverall control of the information processing apparatus 1 and the imageforming apparatus 9. The NB 903 is a bridge for coupling the CPU 901 tothe MEM-P 902, the SB 904, and the AGP bus 921, and includes a memorycontroller that controls reading or writing from or to the MEM-P 902, aperipheral component interconnect (PCI) master, and an AGP target.

The MEM-P 902 includes a read-only memory (ROM) 902 a that is a memoryfor storing a program and data to implement each function of thecontroller 910, and a random access memory (RAM) 902 b that is used as amemory for drawing when developing the program and data and printingdata from the memory. The program stored in the RAM 902 b may beprovided by being recorded in a computer-readable recording medium suchas a compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), a compact disk recordable(CD-R), or a digital versatile disk (DVD) in a file of an installableformat or an executable format.

The SB 904 couples the NB 903 to a PCI device and a peripheral device.The ASIC 906 is an integrated circuit (IC) having a hardware element forimage processing and dedicated to an image processing use, and serves asa bridge that couples the AGP bus 921, a PCI bus 922, the HDD controller908, and the MEM-C 907 to each other. The ASIC 906 includes a PCItarget, an AGP master, an arbiter (ARB) as a central processor of theASIC 906, a memory controller, a plurality of direct memory accesscontrollers (DMACs), and a PCI unit. The memory controller controls theMEM-C 907. For example, the DMACs rotate image data with a hardwarelogic or the like. The PCI unit transfers data between a scanner engine(scanner) 931 and a printer engine (printer) 932 through the PCI bus922. In one example, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface or anInstitute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers 1394 (IEEE 1394)interface may be coupled to the ASIC 906.

The short-range communication circuit 920 includes a card reader 920 afor reading authentication information or the like of a user stored inan IC card or the like. The operation panel 940 includes a touch panel940 a and a numeric keypad 940 b that receive input by a user. The touchpanel 940 a also displays a screen of an application or the like that isexecuted by the image forming apparatus 9.

Functions

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram illustrating an example of functionalblocks in the information processing apparatus 1 according to anembodiment of the disclosure. The information processing apparatus 1includes a detection unit 10, a determination unit 11, a switching unit12, a display control unit 13, and a voice processing unit 14. Theseunits are functions or means that are implemented by the CPU 901executing instructions included in at least one program installed in theinformation processing apparatus 1.

The detection unit 10 detects information relating to a visuallyimpaired person as a user of the information processing apparatus 1. Forexample, the detection unit 10 detects a person, parts of the personsuch as the head, face, arms, hands, body, and legs, and further a whitecane or the like used by a visually impaired person from an imagecaptured by a camera included in the information processing apparatus 1.

In one example, the detection unit 10 detects a wireless tag held by avisually impaired person using a wireless tag detector included in theinformation processing apparatus 1. In another example, the detectionunit 10 detects a feature in an operation such as touching a region thatis not effective in the operation when a user operates a touch panel orthe like of the image forming apparatus 9.

The determination unit 11 determines whether the visually impairedperson is using the information processing apparatus 1 or is going touse the information processing apparatus 1 based on the informationrelating to the visually impaired person detected by the detection unit10. For example, when a white cane is present near a hand of a persondetected from an image captured by the camera included in theinformation processing apparatus 1, the determination unit 11 determinesthat a visually impaired person is using the information processingapparatus 1. In one example, when the detection unit 10 detects awireless tag held by a visually impaired person present near theinformation processing apparatus 1, the determination unit 11 determinesthat the visually impaired person is using the information processingapparatus 1. In another example, when an operation such as touching aregion that is not effective in the operation is detected in theoperation on the touch panel detected by the detection unit 10, thedetermination unit 11 determines that a visually impaired person isusing the information processing apparatus 1. In this disclosure, thedetermination unit 11 determines that a particular object is near theuser or the information processing apparatus 1 based on whether theparticular object is within a preset distance from the user or theinformation processing apparatus 1.

When the switching unit 12 determines that the visually impaired personis using the information processing apparatus 1 or is going to use theinformation processing apparatus 1 as the determination result of thedetermination unit 11, the switching unit 12 enables the voice readingoperation function of the information processing apparatus 1. That is,the switching unit 12 switches the disabled voice reading operationfunction of the information processing apparatus 1 to be enabled basedon the determination result of the determination unit 11.

The display control unit 13 displays an operation screen when a serviceis used, such as a menu screen or a setting screen, on the screen of thetouch panel of the image forming apparatus 9 or the like.

The voice processing unit 14 outputs a voice such as a voice message inthe voice reading operation function or a voice message to confirm withthe user whether the voice reading operation function is allowed to beenabled.

Flowchart of Processing

FIG. 4 is a flowchart presenting an example of processing in theinformation processing apparatus according to an embodiment of thedisclosure. Hereinafter, each step executed by the informationprocessing apparatus 1 will be described.

Step S21: The detection unit 10 of the information processing apparatus1 detects information relating to a visually impaired person as a userof the information processing apparatus 1. For example, the detectionunit 10 detects a person, parts of the person such as the head, face,arms, hands, body, and legs, and further a white cane or the like usedby the visually impaired person from an image captured by the cameraincluded in the information processing apparatus 1.

Step S22: The determination unit 11 of the information processingapparatus 1 determines whether the visually impaired person is using theinformation processing apparatus 1 or is going to use the informationprocessing apparatus 1 based on the information relating to the visuallyimpaired person detected by the detection unit 10. For example, when awhite cane is present near a hand of a person detected from an imagecaptured by the camera included in the information processing apparatus1, the determination unit 11 determines that the visually impairedperson is using the information processing apparatus 1.

Step S23: When the determination unit 11 determines that the visuallyimpaired person is using the information processing apparatus 1 or isgoing to use the information processing apparatus 1, the switching unit12 of the information processing apparatus 1 enables the voice readingoperation function of the information processing apparatus 1. In thiscase, before the voice reading operation function is enabled, the voiceprocessing unit 14 may output a voice message to confirm with the userwhether the voice reading operation function is allowed to be enabled.

With the above-described processing, the information processingapparatus 1 can enable the voice reading operation function when thevisually impaired person is using the information processing apparatus 1or is going to use the information processing apparatus 1. For example,although a predetermined operation is executed to enable the voicereading operation function, in some cases, the visually impaired persondoes not know the operation in advance or cannot perform an operation.In contrast, with the processing according to the embodiment of thepresent disclosure, the voice reading operation function can be enabledwithout the user performing an operation.

Hereinafter, the processing illustrated in FIG. 4 will be described indetail.

Description of Processing

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating processing in an information processingapparatus 1 according to a first embodiment of the disclosure.Processing in a case where a visually impaired person uses a ticketvending machine 30 for a ticket or the like installed in a station orthe like will be described according to the first embodiment.

First, as the processing in step S21 in FIG. 4 , the detection unit 10analyzes an image captured by a camera 31 included in the ticket vendingmachine 30 to detect a person, parts of the person such as the head,arms, hands, body, and legs, and further a white cane or the like usedby a visually impaired person from the image. To detect the white cane,information such as the shape and color of the detected object and thedistance between the detected object and the hand of the person isdetected.

Then, as the processing in step S22 in FIG. 4 , the determination unit11 determines whether the visually impaired person is using theinformation processing apparatus 1 or is going to use the informationprocessing apparatus 1 based on the information detected by thedetection unit 10. When a plurality of persons are detected, the personlocated closest to the ticket vending machine 30 or the camera 31 isdetermined as a user, and it is determined whether the user is avisually impaired person. As a method of determining the person closestto the ticket vending machine 30 or the camera 31, for example, thedetermination unit 11 may use a binocular camera (or also referred to asstereo camera) to measure the distance between the camera 31 and theperson. In one example, the distance may be measured using a lasermeasuring device or an ultrasonic measuring device. In another example,the determination unit 11 may analyze the direction of the face or theline of sight of the detected person and determine that the person facesthe direction of the ticket vending machine 30 or the camera 31 todetermine that the person is using the ticket vending machine 30 or isgoing to use the ticket vending machine 30.

In still another example, the determination unit 11 may determine thatthe detected person is approaching the ticket vending machine 30 using aplurality of images continuous in terms of time or a moving imagecaptured by the camera 31 to determine that the detected person is goingto use the ticket vending machine 30.

Then, to determine whether the person determined as being using theticket vending machine 30 or being going to use the ticket vendingmachine 30 is a visually impaired person, for example, the determinationunit 11 determines whether the determined person has a white cane. As amethod of determining whether the detected object is a white cane, forexample, the determination unit 11 determines that the detected objectis a white cane when the detected object has a thin and long rod-likeshape and is white in color. In one example, the determination unit 11determines that the determined person has a white cane based on whetherthe object detected as the white cane is present near the hand of thedetermined person.

In another example, the determination unit 11 may determine that thedetermined person is a visually impaired person when the user hashis/her face very close to the ticket vending machine 30.

Finally, as the processing in step S23 in FIG. 4 , the switching unit 12enables the voice reading operation function of the ticket vendingmachine 30 when the determination unit 11 determines that the visuallyimpaired person is using the ticket vending machine 30 or is going touse the ticket vending machine 30.

Second Embodiment

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating processing in an information processingapparatus 1 according to a second embodiment of the disclosure.Processing in a case where a visually impaired person holding a wirelesstag 33 uses an image forming apparatus 9 including a wireless tagdetector 32 is described according to the second embodiment.

First, as the processing in step S21 in FIG. 4 , the detection unit 10detects a wireless tag 33 held by a user of the image forming apparatus9 using the wireless tag detector 32 included in the image formingapparatus 9.

The wireless tag 33 is used in, for example, an individualidentification technology through wireless communication called radiofrequency identification (RFID). The wireless tag detector 32 detectsthe wireless tag 33 using, for example, non-contact communication suchas Bluetooth® or near field communication (NFC). In this case, thewireless tag 33 may be a dedicated wireless tag for identifying avisually impaired person, or a wireless tag 33 attached to an employeeID card or an entry card may include information for identifying avisually impaired person.

When a plurality of wireless tags 33 are detected, the detection unit 10may use the wireless tag 33 having the strongest communication intensity(that is, closest to the wireless tag detector 32 or the image formingapparatus 9) as the wireless tag 33 held by the user of the imageforming apparatus 9. In one example, the detection unit 10 may detectthe wireless tag 33 whose detection time is the latest and whosecommunication time is the longest (that is, the user stops for theoperation).

Then, as the processing in step S22 in FIG. 4 , the determination unit11 determines whether a visually impaired person is using the imageforming apparatus 9 or is going to use the image forming apparatus 9based on the wireless tag 33 detected by the detection unit 10. That is,the determination unit 11 determines whether the user holding thedetected wireless tag 33 is a visually impaired person based oninformation for identifying the visually impaired person included in thedetected wireless tag 33.

Finally, as the processing in step S23 in FIG. 4 , the switching unit 12enables the voice reading operation function of the image formingapparatus 9 when the determination unit 11 determines that the visuallyimpaired person is using the image forming apparatus 9 or is going touse the image forming apparatus 9.

Third Embodiment

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating processing in an information processingapparatus according to a third embodiment of the disclosure. Processingin a case where a visually impaired person operates a touch panel of theimage forming apparatus 9 according to the third embodiment isdescribed.

A display control unit 13 displays an operation screen 34 of a scanneron the touch panel of the image forming apparatus 9. As the processingin step S21 in FIG. 4 , the detection unit 10 detects an operation of auser on the operation screen 34 displayed on the touch panel of theimage forming apparatus 9.

Then, as the processing in step S22 in FIG. 4 , the determination unit11 determines whether a visually impaired person is using the imageforming apparatus 9 or is going to use the image forming apparatus 9based on the operation of the user detected by the detection unit 10.That is, the determination unit 11 determines whether the operation ofthe user is a normal operation for using the image forming apparatus 9or an operation by a visually impaired person such as searching for anoperation method by groping. For the determination, the determinationunit 11 divides the operation screen 34 in FIG. 7 into an operationeffective region 35 that is a region in which various buttons to betouched by the user in a normal operation are arranged, and an operationineffective region 36 that is a region other than the operationeffective region 35. Then, when the user performs an operation in theoperation ineffective region 36, the determination unit 11 determinesthat a visually impaired person is using the image forming apparatus 9.In one example, when an operation of touching a portion indicating abutton and then swiping from the portion is performed, since such anoperation may be a groping motion performed by the visually impairedperson, the determination unit 11 may determine the operation as notbeing the normal operation of pressing the button. In another example,the determination unit 11 may determine that a swiping operation thatcannot be a normal operation (such as scrolling the screen) on theoperation screen 34 is an operation by the visually impaired person.

The above-described embodiments are illustrative and do not limit thepresent invention. Thus, numerous additional modifications andvariations are possible in light of the above teachings. For example,elements and/or features of different illustrative embodiments may becombined with each other and/or substituted for each other within thescope of the present invention. Any one of the above-describedoperations may be performed in various other ways, for example, in anorder different from the one described above.

The example illustrated in the configuration diagram of the functionalblocks in FIG. 3 is divided into blocks in accordance with mainfunctions for easier understanding of the processing by the informationprocessing apparatus 1. The disclosure of the application is not limitedby the method of dividing the units of processing or the name of theprocessing. The processing of the information processing apparatus 1 canbe divided into more units of processing in accordance with the contentof the processing. One unit of processing may be divided so as toinclude more sub-units of processing.

The functionality of the elements disclosed herein may be implementedusing circuitry or processing circuitry which includes general purposeprocessors, special purpose processors, integrated circuits, applicationspecific integrated circuits (ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs),field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), conventional circuitry and/orcombinations thereof which are configured or programmed to perform thedisclosed functionality. Processors are considered processing circuitryor circuitry as they include transistors and other circuitry therein. Inthe disclosure, the circuitry, units, or means are hardware that carryout or are programmed to perform the recited functionality. The hardwaremay be any hardware disclosed herein or otherwise known which isprogrammed or configured to carry out the recited functionality. Whenthe hardware is a processor which may be considered a type of circuitry,the circuitry, means, or units are a combination of hardware andsoftware, the software being used to configure the hardware and/orprocessor.

The group of apparatuses or devices described above is just one exampleof plural computing environments that implement the one or moreembodiments disclosed in the specification. In some embodiments, theinformation processing apparatus 1 includes multiple computing devices,such as a server cluster. The plurality of computing devices areconfigured to communicate with each other via any type of communicationlink, including a network, a shared memory, or the like and perform theprocessing disclosed in the specification.

1. An information processing apparatus comprising: circuitry configuredto detect information relating to a user of the information processingapparatus, determine whether the user is a visually impaired personbased on the information relating to the user, and based on adetermination indicating that the user is the visually impaired person,enable a voice reading operation function for the visually impairedperson.
 2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,wherein the circuity is configured to analyze an image captured by acamera to detect information relating to the user and a white cane, andwhen the white cane is present near a hand of the user, determine thatthe user is the visually impaired person.
 3. The information processingapparatus according to claim 1, wherein the circuity is configured todetect information included in a wireless tag held by the user, anddetermine whether the user is the visually impaired person based on theinformation included in the wireless tag.
 4. The information processingapparatus according to claim 1, wherein the circuity is configured todetect information relating to a feature in an operation on theinformation processing apparatus by the user, and determine whether theuser is the visually impaired person based on the information relatingto the feature in the operation.
 5. The information processing apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein the circuitry is further configured tooutput a voice message to confirm whether the voice reading operationfunction is allowed to be enabled before the voice reading operationfunction is enabled.
 6. An information processing method, comprising:detecting information relating to a user of an information processingapparatus; determining whether the user is a visually impaired personbased on the information relating to the user; and based on adetermination that the user is the visually impaired person, enabling avoice reading operation function for the visually impaired person.
 7. Anon-transitory recording medium which, when executed by one or moreprocessors, causes the processors to perform an information processingmethod, the method comprising: detecting information relating to a userof an information processing apparatus; determining whether the user isa visually impaired person based on the information relating to theuser; and based on a determination that the user is the visuallyimpaired person, enabling a voice reading operation function for thevisually impaired person.